February 11
Pittsburgh Tribune Review
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Even with new stitches in his upper lip, Jordan Staal was feeling optimistic about his health and his season now that his month-long layoff has ended. "Things are looking up," said Staal, who will rejoin the Penguins' lineup today for an afternoon game against the Winnipeg Jets at Consol Energy Center. Staal hasn't played since injuring his left knee Jan. 6. "The knee feels really strong and everything feels really good," he said. Staal's recovery and return will be uplifting for a team all too familiar with injuries, including several to Staal. "He's had some bad luck in the injury department," said Matt Cooke, now paired with Pascal Dupuis on a line centered by Staal. "He's a big part of"
January 8
Pittsburgh Tribune Review
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Center Jordan Staal did not play Saturday against New Jersey, only 24 hours after he injured his left knee against the Rangers. Penguins coach Dan Bylsma said for a second consecutive day that no update on Staal was available. The Penguins are hoping that Staal does not have a season-ending injury, something that would cripple their already depleted lineup. Staal was seen leaving Consol Energy Center on Saturday afternoon. He was walking without crutches, but was hampered by a pronounced limp. "We hope he's OK," Penguins center Joe Vitale said. "You can't replace what that guy can do. We know that. But we need to come together and do our best.""
December 11
Pittsburgh Tribune Review
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When healthy, the Penguins are considered among the NHL's finest teams. But whether good health ever blesses the Penguins again is becoming a legitimate question. Center Jordan Staal missed Saturday's game against the New York Islanders with what the team called a "lower-body injury." Coach Dan Bylsma said Staal was injured in Philadelphia and is "day to day." The injury is not believed to be serious."
November 17
Pittsburgh Tribune Review
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That Penguins center Jordan Staal ripped into his teammates following a sloppy first period against Colorado on Tuesday is no surprise. Leadership has always come naturally to him. Consistent scoring has always seemed more of a challenge for the 23-year-old. Until now, anyway. Staal, long considered one of the game's elite defensive forwards, has become an offensive force. His vision and creativity — never strengths in his first five seasons — have seemingly caught up with Staal's immense size and defensive gifts. His teammates aren't surprised by his overall dominance. "I've always seen it, ever since I've been here," right wing James Neal said. "I saw it in juniors, too. That talent has"
November 2
Pittsburgh Tribune Review
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Penguins center Jordan Staal and defenseman Kris Letang missed practice for a second consecutive day at Southpointe on Tuesday, but Penguins coach Dan Bylsma emphasized that he believes both will play in San Jose and Los Angeles later this week. Staal missed Saturday's game against Toronto with a lower-body injury. "Continued maintenance recovering from bumps and bruises," Bylsma said. Staal skated before practice for a second straight day. The nature of Letang's injury is unknown, though Letang and Staal were seen at Southpointe walking without limps."
October 30
Pittsburgh Tribune Review
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Playing at arguably the highest level of his career, Penguins center Jordan Staal's fast start has been sidetracked by a lower-body injury. The Penguins scratched Staal for Saturday night's game at Toronto, but coach Dan Bylsma said he did not expect the injury to be a "long-term" problem, describing Staal as "day to day." Staal's setback continued the Penguins' injury see-saw, particularly at what was the team's position of strength -- center."
October 9
Pittsburgh Tribune Review
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Penguins center Jordan Staal played against the Calgary Flames on Saturday night despite leaving the season opener in Vancouver two nights earlier with dehydration issues. Staal, who did not practice Friday, said he was fully recovered from the troubles that plagued him against the Canucks. "It was just a hot building," Staal said. "I guess my body sweats a lot, and I got a lot of cramps. My legs starting seizing up.""
October 8
Pittsburgh Tribune Review
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Hockey teams have a colorful history of distorting the truth about injuries, but Penguins coach Dan Bylsma made it clear Friday that center Jordan Staal really did leave Thursday night's season opener at Vancouver with cramps related to dehydration. "I can try honesty if you'd like," Bylsma said after practice at Scotiabank Saddledome, which Staal did not participate in. "I tried it (Thursday), and I'll try it again. He cramped in the game (Thursday) night. That's why he didn't finish the game. The best thing for him is getting on the bike (Friday), and he'll be ready to go (tonight against the Flames).""
October 6
Pittsburgh Tribune Review
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The Penguins are dodging a bullet because one of hockey's great two-way players, Canucks center Ryan Kesler, is nursing a hip injury and won't be available for Thursday night's season opener. Center Jordan Staal, entering his sixth NHL season at age 23, might be poised to see his offensive numbers spike just like Kesler's did. Both became NHL regulars because of strong defensive play, and Canucks captain Henrik Sedin suggested Staal could follow Kesler's lead and become a dynamic offensive player. "I see so many similarities between Jordan and Kesler," Sedin said. "It seems like Jordan has been in the league forever, but you must remember how young he is. The offense will come.""
September 23
Pittsburgh Tribune Review
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Jordan Staal scored twice, and Matt Cooke and Tyler Kennedy added tallies — all in the third period — to give the Penguins a 4-1 victory over the Chicago Blackhawks in a preseason game Thursday night at Consol Energy Center. The game was Cooke's first since he was assessed a 17-game suspension for elbowing the New York Rangers' Ryan McDonagh on March 20. Cooke played a physical but clean game. "I thought you saw a lot of positive things that Matt Cooke brings to the game," coach Dan Bylsma said."
July 4
Pittsburgh Tribune Review
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The Penguins have wiggle room under the salary cap -- $2.1 million, to be exact -- but don't expect them to make many inquiries into the free agent market the rest of this summer. Next summer is more important. With two years remaining on the contracts of Sidney Crosby and Jordan Staal, signing the star centers is general manager Ray Shero's highest priority. He believes the Penguins will be a Stanley Cup contender even without making a splash in free agency this summer, while simultaneously making room for Crosby's and Staal's eventual extensions. "We have Crosby and Staal coming up in a couple of years," Shero said. "We're set up pretty well." Negotiations with Crosby and Staal can begin"
April 25
Pittsburgh Tribune Review
columnist Kevin Gorman
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Forget about misery loving company. Jordan Staal just wanted to be left alone Saturday after Tampa Bay's 8-2 pounding of the Penguins, the greatest margin of defeat in club playoff history. Who can blame him? Staal is the Penguins' first-line center but hasn't scored a goal and has only two points in this Eastern Conference quarterfinal series. The 6-foot-4, 220-pounder is the net-front presence for a power play that went 0 for 7 in Game 5 and is 1 for 25 in the series. He is at the heart of the league's top penalty-killing unit -- which allowed the Lightning to score four power-play goals Saturday. Penguins coach Dan Bylsma said nothing Sunday to absolve Staal of the blame for the"
April 4
Pittsburgh Tribune Review
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Somebody not paying close attention to the Penguins -- one of those types that judges a forward only by goals and points -- a person like that probably wouldn't believe that center Jordan Staal has stepped up in the absences of Sidney Crosby and Evgeni Malkin. Somebody -- one of those types -- a person like that would be wrong. "He's taken (on) a lot of responsibility with the guys we have out of the lineup," Penguins winger Craig Adams said Saturday night after Staal recorded a season-best three assists in a must-have 4-2 victory at Florida. Only a win that night guaranteed the Penguins would maintain control of a race with Tampa Bay for the Eastern Conference's No. 4 seed and home-ice"
March 14
Pittsburgh Tribune Review
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Jordan Staal takes extreme pride in his work, and he knew his showing against Montreal on Saturday wasn't acceptable. Only 24 hours later, he responded in typical fashion. Staal scored a goal, added an assist and played a significant role in another virtuoso penalty-killing effort Sunday, as the Penguins rolled past Edmonton, 5-1, at Consol Energy Center. "You don't see too many bad games from Jordan Staal," coach Dan Bylsma said. Nor do you see Staal endure consecutive poor outings or often receive criticism from management. In Sunday's Edmonton Journal, Penguins general manager Ray Shero was quoted as offering a sharp comment on Staal's performance against the Canadiens: "He was horrible"
February 4
Pittsburgh Tribune Review
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Something good did come out of January for the Penguins, who played most of the month without center Sidney Crosby (concussion) and the final weeks of it without center Evgeni Malkin (sinus infection). That "something" is center Jordan Staal, who made his season debut in the Winter Classic on New Year's Day and has assumed No. 1 center duties for the past few weeks. Admittedly, Staal said his game "is not quite there yet," adding that his conditioning "is pretty darn close." The injuries to Crosby and Malkin were a blessing for Staal, who had spent only a couple of weeks practicing with teammates from mid-May to the day after Christmas. Three surgeries -- two to correct an infected foot,"
February 3
Pittsburgh Tribune Review
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The NHL has ruled that C Jordan Staal will not be suspended despite receiving a match penalty and subsequent ejection after punching the Rangers' Brandon Prust Tuesday. Staal's value has never been greater because so many centers in the Penguins' lineup are currently injured. He was relieved to avoid a suspension. "I'm obviously happy about that," he said. Staal's glove remained on during the altercation and he was not expecting a match penalty."
January 16
Pittsburgh Tribune Review
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A timeout after allowing two goals in 13 seconds wasn't what Penguins goalie Marc-Andre Fleury wanted from coach Dan Bylsma on Saturday. Bylsma figured he had to do something, though, after the Boston Bruins had erased a two-goal deficit for the third time in as many games against the Penguins. "It was part of the consideration, given the history," Bylsma said of using his only allotted timeout at 11:41 of the second period — immediately after Bruins right wing Michael Ryder and defenseman Dennis Seidenberg had pulled them even. Fleury, who was screened on both goals, swept snow from his crease with his stick as Penguins skaters gathered near the bench to hear encouragement from Bylsma."
January 2
Pittsburgh Tribune Review
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Jordan Staal's first NHL shift in almost eight full months was solid. His second one was something to behold. Making his regular-season debut Saturday night on the outdoor rink at Heinz Field, returning dramatically for the NHL Winter Classic, Staal dominated for the Penguins on the Washington Capitals' first power play. A finalist last season for the Selke Trophy awarded to the NHL's best defensive forward, he churned out a short-handed shift during which he picked off two passes, stripped a Capitals' player of the puck and registered a short-handed shot on goal — the rebound of which was put on net by winger Pascal Dupuis. Nice start for a guy who hadn't played since May 12, 2009, the"
December 27
Pittsburgh Tribune Review
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Jordan Staal returned to the ice today during the Penguins' morning skate. He said that no timetable has been set for his return from a broken hand and acknowledged that a report that the hand was broken twice was inaccurate. Staal didn't rule out a return to the Penguins by The Winter Classic Saturday at Heinz Field even though that would seem quite unlikely."